Machine for pointing wooden toothpicks.



' Patented Mar. 6, I900. w. H. DYEH. MACHINE FOR PUINTING WOODEN TOOTHPICKS.

(Application filed Sept. '20, 1897.)

2 Sheets-8heet I.

(No Model.)

by lzzjs afforhfy,

wrrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE" WILLIAM H. DYER, OF STRONG, MAINE.

MACHINE FOR POINTING WOODEN TOOTHPICKS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 644,851, dated March 6, 1900.

Application-filed S pt mb r 20,1897- Serial No. 652,227. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it knownthat 1, WILLIAM H. DYER, a citizen of the United States,residin g at Strong, in the county of Franklin, State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Pointing Wooden byset-screws 18 18.

Toothpicks, of which the following is a speci fication.

My invention relates to that class of machines for making wooden toothpicks in which the blank from which the picks are to be out is beveled on both sides preparatory to being cut into picks; and it consists in the arrangement and combination of parts which will be more fully described hereinafter.

In the drawings like figures refer to like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of my improved adjustable knife-holder. Fig. 2 is a plan View of the strip or blank as it is fed to the machine. Fig. 3 is an end view of the same. Fig. 4 is an end view of a portion of a machine embodying my device for pointing both sides of the blank at the same time. Fig. 5 is a side view of the adjustable knives for pointing both ends of the strip at once.

The stock is fed to the machine in the form of rectangular strips. The periphery of the feed-roller 13 is corrugated. Flat springs 15 15 serve to keep the stock down firmly against the bed 35, so that it is always presented to the knives l6 and 16' in a proper manner, it being essential that the blank should be thus held firmly down close to the edge of the knives. The feed-rollers feed forward the blank against the edge of the knives, which are stationary, the cutting being done by the action of the feed-rollers in feeding the blank against the edge of the knives. The knives 16 are held in a slotted cylindrical holder 17 The holder has a hearing at 19 in the adjustable plate 20. The holder 17 is prevented from moving longitudinally in the plate 20 by an enlarged portion 21, forming a shoulder at one end, and by the arm 22 at the opposite end, fastened to the holder 17 by the screw 23. The cylinder-holders are arranged on each side above and below and parallel to the line of feed of the toothpicks, and the knives are provided with cylindrical portions which are adjusttipped laterally at different angles with'the horizontal plane by means of the set-screws 25 25, advancing one and moving back the other, as required. Y

The plate 20 is adjustably secured to sliding head 27 by means of the screws 28 28, the plate 20 being slotted at 29 to enable the same to be adjusted, and thus tipping the knife at different angles longitudinally with the horizontal plane.

The sliding head 27 is provided to slide upon ways 30 upon the frame of the machine and is raised and lowered thereon by the screw 31, the screw being fixed against Vertical movement in the slotted ear 31 on the frame of the machine and tapped into the sliding head 27 at 33. After being adjusted to the required height by turning the screw 31 the head 27 is fastened to the frame of the machine by the screw 34:.

To obviate the difficulty of having both knives cut in one place and separate the fibers of the wood at the edge of the strip, so thata firm point cannot be had for the pick when it is made, I draw back the under knifeashort distance-about one-fourth of an inch, more or less, from the edge of the upper knife, but sufficiently to accomplish the desired result the bed 35 being prolonged so as to come up to the edge of the under knife, and I place the upper knife as closely as possible to the strip.

' It will be seen that the upper knife will itself form a bed to hold the strip firmly Whilethe under knife 16 is doing its Work. The position of these knives and of the bed is shown in Fig. 5. Elevating-screws 31 31 are placed horizontal plane for the purpose of beveling the blank from which the picks are thereafter to be cut, more or less; second, they may be tipped more or less at an angle with the horizontal plane longitudinally, thus giving more clearance to the stock as it passes by the knife; third, the knives may be bodily raised or lowered without changing the angle of the same to the horizontal plane, and, fourth, the knives will bevel or point both ends of the strip or blank at the same time and the difficulty as to the points of the picks will be removed.

What I claim, and desire by Letters Patent to secure, is

1. In a machine for pointing toothpicks, a suitable feeding mechanism, combined with the four knives which have theircutting ends turned at an angle and arranged so that two of them operate upon each end of the pick, and the cylindrical holders arranged on each side above and below, and parallel to the line of feed of the picks, and in which the cylindrical portions of the knives are adjustable, and by means of which the knives are made adjustable in relation to each other, substantially as shown.

2. In a machine for pointing toothpicks, the smooth wheel 14, the toothed wheel 13, operating mechanisms therefor, and the two springs for holding the toothpicks in position while being operated upon, combined with the cylindrical holders arranged on each side above and below and parallel to the line of feed of the material, and the two sets of adjustable knives having cylindrical portions which are adjustable in said holders, and having their cutting edges turned at an angle to said arms, and which cutting portions are transverse to the axis of the cylinder portions, substantially as set forth.

3. In a machine for pointing blanks from which toothpicks are to be formed, four knives or cutters, the upper ones of which form a bed to hold the strip while the lower ones are drawn slightly back from the edges of the upper knives, combined with a smooth and a toothed wheel which form the feeding mechanism, substantially as shown.

4. A knife-holder consisting of the slotted cylindrical holder, combined with the adjustable plate 20 provided with a bearing for the cylinder, the arm 22 having an opening in its edge, and through which the cylinder extends, and which arm is provided with two cars; setscrews to pass through the ears, and an ear formed upon the plate 20 and which extends between the two set-screws, substantially as described.

5. The sliding head, suitable ways upon which it is adjusted, screws for adjusting the head, the plate 20 provided with an adj usting-slot, and which plate is pivoted upon the said head and provided with a bearing for the cylinder, an ear, the cylinder 17 which is journaled in the bearing of the plate, the arm 22 through which one end of the cylinder extends, and which is provided with cars 24; and adjusting-screws 25 which pass through the ears upon the bearing, and bear against the ear upon the plate 20, substantially as set forth.

- WILLIAM H. DYER. lVitnesses:

MAURICE W. HOSTEB, I. C. TIRRELL. 

